Rebirth Snatching Back My Stolen Luck novel Chapter 72

hapter 72

Crossing her arms, she explained, “I didn’t dare stay at their house. I’m afraid of the twins, especially Marissa. You know how she is–lawless and uncompromising. Even her parents can’t rein her in when she decides to make trouble.”

“Later, I ambiguously asked Aunt Evelyn when my apartment keys would be returned. She said Julian had them and she’d try to get them back soon.

“So relax. I’ll be out of your hair as soon as I get them.”

Her explanation eased the tension in my chest.

With that, I tuned her out and no longer paid her attention, sinking into my own thoughts.

Dean…

If he really intends to manipulate Lilith and find his way back into the Scotts, I’ll never allow

1. it.

I won’t let him destroy–or take away–everything I’ve built.

LILITH

After lunch at Dean’s place, he drove me to a mall just a short distance from the community.

We spent hours drifting from one store to the next, piling our arms with anything that caught my eye–even things I didn’t strictly need. But that didn’t matter.

For the first time, I’d be decorating my personal space, and I could take my time making it feel like home.

Bedsheets. Throw blankets. Fragrant candles. Potted succulents I wasn’t even sure I could keep alive.

A part of me knew I was going overboard, but after years of having no say over even the tiniest details of my life, choosing my own curtains–their colors, their patterns–felt intoxicating.

The whole time, Dean never told me to slow down. He just followed behind me, his hands

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Chapter 72

full with bags while a small, indulgent smile played on his lips.

By the time we stepped out of the last store—a grocery stop–the sky had taken on a soft amber hue. We lugged our haul, light and heavy, small and large, to the trunk of his car.

On the drive back, I couldn’t stop smiling, and perhaps influenced by my mood, Dean chuckled and asked, “Are you really that happy?”

I looked over at him and nodded with a light hum. “More than you can possibly imagine

And of course, just like in every story, that moment of happiness is the perfect cue for someone to ruin it.

My phone rang in my bag, and without thinking, I pulled it out.

Caller ID: Uncle Theo.

I answered without hesitation.

“Hello-”

Only for me to hear my mom’s voice, tight with fury, cut me off. “So you did block your father’s and my numbers after all?!”

Oh, took you long enough to figure it out, I thought with a sneer.

I’d blocked them the moment I walked out this morning, thinking they’d soon bombard me with calls demanding I return home when they realized I was gone.

The fact they were only just realizing now meant Uncle Theo had either held off telling them, or they assumed I’d crawl back on my own.

Either way, my good mood soured instantly.

“So?” I said flatly. “Why are you calling?”

“What’s with that tone, Lilith? I’m your mother. Show some respect!” she snapped. “Or have I been lowering myself for you these past few days just so you think you can speak to me

however you like?”

Lowering herself?

I scoffed inwardly.

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Of course, I was foolish to expect sincere remorse from her, or any of those people.

They were clearly the ones in the wrong, yet after a half–hearted act, they expected instant forgiveness. And if I didn’t comply, I became the unreasonable one.

All of a sudden, I felt a warm pressure settle over my hand.

Startled, I glanced down to see Dean’s fingers gently covering mine, his other hand steady on the wheel.

Judging from the concern in his eyes when I looked up, my face must have given me away.

I didn’t pull my hand back, and returned my attention to the call.

“If you don’t tell me why you called in the next two minutes, I’m hanging up.”

“You-” Mom’s voice rose but was abruptly cut off. Then Dad’s voice replaced hers, calm yet laced with authority.

“Lily, it’s me. Don’t mind your mom’s tone–she’s just worried,” he said. “Theo told us you moved out. Is that true?”

So it was the second option, I concluded from his tone.

They thought I was bluffing and calmly waited for me to come crawling back, but as the day dragged on, they realized I wasn’t joking.

I smirked. “Would I joke about something like this?”

“This isn’t child’s play,” Dad said sharply. “You’ve never lived alone your whole life. How can you suddenly decide this without consulting us?”

“Don’t act like I ever had a choice. Or have you forgotten? When I started college, I asked to live in the dorms. To learn how to stand on my own.

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Chapter 73

Chapter 73